Just how fat is fat enough?

First, a disclaimer.
I, myself, am overweight. I have been most of my life. I'll be happy to rant about that subject someday if you want. But in any case, before you read this post and assume I'm some kind of underweight, judgmental ass, let me just assure you that I face the same uphill battle that over 60% of Americans face. So ... having said that ...

Just how fat is fat enough?
I'm watching television last night with my hubby and we see an ad for the new Pizza Hut Dippin' Sticks. I'm telling you, we stared at that commercial like a couple of monkeys looking at a math problem.

Did I miss something? Was pizza just not fattening enough on it's own? Really? So a 500 calorie slice of a 16" Meat Lovers pizza just wasn't enough? Who's the fucking mensa genius at PepsiCo that decided the perfect solution to America's growing obesity problem was to start dunking pizza into salad dressing or, worse yet, garlic butter??? Is there any doctor who would sign off on that???

You know, I believe with all my heart and soul that we, alone, are responsible for our actions. Pizza Hut has not showed up at my door with a gun and a box of these Dippin Sticks. McDonalds has not chased me down the street ala Terminator 2 and forced their fries down my throat. I choose what goes in my body just like you do.

So, what's the problem? The problem, my friends, is the culture. We live in a culture of excess. If one is good, then two is better. If two is good, the three is great. There's been a dramatic rise in the number of people who are fighting a weight problem. Right now, over 65% of Americans are overweight and, of those people, over 31% are clinically obese. Each year, our lifestyles become more hectic and chaotic ... and maintaining a healthy body weight falls further and further back on our list of priorities.

So, I'm not picking on the fast food industry. Heaven knows there are a million reasons why someone (like me) continues to be overweight. But in the big scheme of things, fast food is one of the worst factors in the obesity scenario.

Is there any reason why we need to dunk pepperoni pizza into ranch dressing? Do we need to eat a 1,420 calorie Monster Thickburger?? How about that batter-dipped fried Twinkie at the State Fair? How much sense does that make???

All I'm saying, is that it's hard enough to make smart, healthy choices in the world we live in ... without people inventing shit like fried Snickers bars. It's gotta stop somewhere, people ... or we're all gonna end up looking like schmoo.

You can choose a ready guide
In some celestial voice
If you choose not to decide
You still have made a choice
You can choose from phantom fears
And kindness that can kill
I will choose a path that’s clear
I will choose free will

Rush - Free Will